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What is the Budget?
Every year, in March or April, the Chancellor of the Exchequer presents his Budget statement to members of Parliament in the House of Commons. This is his annual update on how the Government plans to spend revenue from taxes. Under Osborne, it is also about how the Government plans to cut spending as he tries to cut the deficit by 2020.
Hang on, didn’t that happen more than once last year?
Last year there were three Budget announcements: the Budget, the Autumn Statement and an interim emergency or summer budget after the general election, to confirm the Conservatives’ economic plan.
The Autumn Statement, which fell on November 25, 2015, is another update on the Chancellor’s economic forecasts, but it doesn’t contain as much detail as the Budget.
When is it?
The Budget announcement is on Wednesday March 16 around 12.30pm. It usually lasts for about an hour.
After the speech, some measures, such as any changes to alcohol or tobacco duty, come into effect on the same day or the day after.
The three-tiered system of tax relief between 20 per cent and 45 per cent could be scrapped in favour of a blanket 33 per cent tax rate. That means the highest earners may have to pay more into their pensions to get the same amount back.
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Fuel Dutycould also increase, putting an end to a four-year freeze. The low oil price means that consumers wouldn’t notice higher fuel duty as much.
Lloyds'share sale might be announced again, after the last proposed share sale was postponed because of stock market uncertainty.
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